In response the Campaign Against Urban Sprawl in Essex has addressed the claims made by NEGC in another public letter: [pdf]

“The letter from the Authorities to the inspector dated 19 October sets out what we believe is an extremely unrealistic timetable for the further work required by the Inspector.”

CAUSE highlights how the ‘pressure’ of the local election cycle appears to be governing the urgency coming from NEGC.

You can see how this works at a local level.

The ‘progressive alliance’ of the LibDems and Labour in Sunny Colch are but one seat away from being kicked out of power. They need to be seen to be in control of this agenda before the next set of local elections in May.

It gets a little more interesting when you consider that not all local ‘progressive alliance’ Cllr’s are signed up to the grand vision of their Leaders…

CAUSE calls for:

“Adequate time and care are taken now to ensure that any proposals are realistic and robust.”

aka please don’t waste any more public money.

This was a point raised at CBC Full Council on Wednesday evening. Conservative Cllr Dennis Willetts questioned why financial scrutiny of the plans hasn’t taken place.

CAUSE continue:

“We believe that any Plan submitted to the Planning Inspectorate in March 2019 will be extremely unlikely to be sound.”

UNSOUND.

You listening?

NEGC keeps on banging the infrastructure drum as though it is a virtue that will get them through this car crash of a plan.

CAUSE can see right through this. Residents also want infrastructure; simply repeating the mantra without adding in any evidence leaves you looking a little naked.

Which is not a very nice thought…

“How is it possible to select alternatives, assess alternatives, explain choices and choose the most appropriate alternative in the absence of evidence of viability, employment and transport provision?”

In conclusion from CAUSE:

“Finally, we are ever more concerned that the public behaviour of the NEA’s points to closed minds and a lack of objective thinking. The view presented to the public is that the same three garden community proposals submitted previously will ‘make the grade’ with a little tweaking of the evidence.”

To be fair to NEGC there wasn’t even any tweaking of the evidence in the piss poor puff piece of a website that put up to try and fool investors.